I was shopping for a new grinder to pair with my Expobar, and to replace my Ascaso I-1d. At first I was interested in the Mazzer mini with electronic dosing, but the price kept me away. Finding this grinder was a real treat, allowing me to have the features of the Mazzer at a significant savings.

The build is solid, and this machine is heavy at 27lbs. The grind is set my rotating the steel ring that holds the hopper and locking it in place with a plastic gear stop. This is the biggest point of concern for me, the plastic. While everything else on this machine is metal aside from the hopper of course, the piece that locks the top burr in place is a plastic nub with ridges that fit into the grooves under the gear. It feels solid enough, and perhaps it would even be easy to replace but it is something I saw as a cheap solution. Aside from that, this grinder is a pseudo stepless grinder, in that while you are limited to the locking grooves under the gear I described above, the difference in each stop is incredibly small, resulting in ultrafine adjustment without the hassle of a true stepless. Dialing this grinder in took only a few minutes as it was sent rather closely set for espresso.

The machine itself is quieter than I expected, and grinds an 18g dose in under 6 seconds. The funnel retains almost no grinds, and I havent had any significant issue with static, clumping or spraying. Programming the timer is intuitive enough, and it only takes a few tries before getting the dosing and grind settings locked in.

The machine ships stock with a rather large hopper, but a shorter option is available that shrinks the machine to about 18 inches tall.

I'm very happy with this machine, and while I have had it seize on me once or twice, this is due to my adjusting the burrs without having the grinder running.

Buying Experience

Easy enough, 1st-line shipped it with the smaller hopper swapped out for the larger at my request.

Three Month Followup

I am still in love with this grinder. Easy to clean, east to use, easy to program, and easy to adjust. I feared that the micro-step adjustment would prevent me from accurately dialing in a grind, I was wrong. The steps actually make it easier for me to estimate what corrections I need to make as I pull shots. In fact now when I try a new blend, after tasting the first shot I can usually make the adjustment in one or two tries. For a while there I though I had a static problem, but a quick wipe of the funnel with an anti-static cloth corrected this with long lasting results. Everything performs well, a great buy indeed.

One Year Followup

Still a great grinder, cleaning it is easy, and I haven't had any issues to speak of. Still a consistent grind with little need of readjustment. The burrs remain sharp, though I do only pull 2-4 shots a day. Would definitely buy again, and I can see quamar has come out with some new interesting products in the US which may be worth looking into.